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Posted on November 30, 2019
by Nathan
There isn't a whole lot to report on in this update, but what we have been working on has kept us busy!
Bible First
Bible First Online
Josh and I are continuing to work hard on web development. We are cautiously optimistic that by the end of the year, our students will have the option of doing their lessons online. Still a lot of work to do, but we can see the light at the end of the tunnel!
Ukrainian Bible First
Bible First Online is going to be new and cool and shiny, but we don't want to forget our roots! I'm still in the process of checking over the second edition of Lessons 6-20, and making sure they are ready to print.
Family
On October 9th, our family moved to a new apartment. It was a lot of work to pack up, move, and then unpack, but we are really happy to have made the switch. The extra space and improved layout have made everyday life much more pleasant!
One of the highlights of the move (and also our saving grace!) was that my mom came for the three weeks around the move. Now that my youngest sister has her driver's license, Mom has more freedom to travel around, and she managed to work up the courage to attempt her first intercontinental trip. Thankfully, things went smoothly, and she was a huge help!
Mom, the girls, and I in the steeple of a church near our home.
In other family news, Jonathan is finally walking! Our girls all walked at about a year, but Jonathan took his sweet time and waited until he was 15 months. Unfortunately, no sooner did he learn to walk, he had to start wearing his snowsuit. Our warmer-than-average fall came to an abrupt halt recently, and hats, mittens, etc., are standard fare these days. But that's okay, as I'm sure Briana would tell you, because her birthday is in the winter!
Posted on September 14, 2019
by Nathan
Bible First
There are several Bible-First-related things to report on, so I'll break this up
into a couple groups:
Ukrainian Bible First
Lessons 1-5 of the second edition of Bible First in Ukrainian are currently at the printers. We were promised they would be ready
last week, so hopefully in the next couple days…? The next step will be to
check over Lessons 6-20, make sure they are ready to print, and get them off to
the printer.
Spanish Bible First
We finished going through the Spanish Bible First files, and made notes of
everything that needs to be fixed, but we are currently in a holding pattern
with printing prep. Our main Spanish guy, Ralph Villeneuve, is busy with school,
but hopes to work on the issues we found in a few months during his holiday
break.
Bible First Online
Now that we have recovered from CMO, Josh and I are dusting off our web-development
hats and getting ready for the next push on Bible First Online. Hopefully by the
end of the year, our students will have the option of studying online!
Family
Some of you may remember that two years ago, Katelin broke her foot. Well,
almost a month ago, she rolled her foot just like last time, it popped just like
last time, and started to swell just like last time. We went in for an X-ray,
but the doctors didn't feel like it was a complete break, likely just a crack.
We were told Katelin didn't need a cast, just to stay off of it for a while and
rest.
Sure enough, the recovery from this foot injury has been much faster. Last time,
at the three-week mark, Katelin was just getting her cast off. This time, she
was pretty much operational, albeit with some discomfort, and still taking it a
bit slower. For which, we are very thankful!
Both Lydia and Jonathan had birthdays recently!
One other big project we have coming down the pipe is a move to a new apartment.
We have found a new apartment that is a bit bigger, but more importantly, the
space is broken up in such a way as to be more usable. We will be making the
final arrangements this week, and hope to be moving in about a month. So if next
month's update is late, or gets skipped altogether, you'll know why!
Posted on August 17, 2019
by Nathan
Carpathian Mountain Outreach
CMO 2019 has been over for a little over a month now, but requests are still
coming in! Over the past month, we've received a little over 40 requests for
Good and Evil and Bible First. Pray for the literature going out, that it would
be read and understood.
Bible First
Now that we are (mostly) recovered from CMO, we are pushing forward on new
fronts! We are preparing to print Bible First in not one, but two languages.
The first printing is a reprinting of Bible First in Ukrainian. The new edition
will feature a more modern design, more in line with the design of Bible First
in English. Some of the earlier lessons have also been revised, and those
revisions will finally make it into print. We have been wanting to do this for a
long time, but have never gotten around to making it happen.
The second printing will be in Spanish, which will be the first time the whole
Bible First course will be available in Spanish! Ralph Villeneuve recently
finished laying out the files for printing, and we are working through the
files, fixing bugs and working out all the things that will need to be in place
before we go to press.
Team News
Joshua and Kelsie had their baby almost month ago, and she is a cutie! Her name
is Mia, and our girls are looking forward to meeting her for the first time!
(For a while, we were dealing with a stomach flu bug, and had to keep our
distance. We are finally over it, though!)
Family
I've heard a lot about record heat this summer, but we have actually had a
cooler summer, and we've been enjoying it! That said, with the end of summer
comes school, and Katelin and the girls are back at it. Even Briana is getting
in on the action, with a bit of beginner's math! (It's mostly just for fun, as
she is only 3 1/2.)
Briana enjoys one of the pretty summer days!
We recently celebrated Jonathan's first birthday. He is a big, happy boy who loves to
go and do, and he keeps us on our toes. Lydia's birthday will be soon, it's hard
to believe that she will be seven! These kids are growing up on us!
Posted on July 16, 2019
by Nathan
Carpathian Mountain Outreach
It's hard to believe that we are already looking at CMO 2019 in the rearview
mirror! Four young men from the US and Canada joined us for our summer outreach,
and over the course of four weeks, we hosted film showings in five Carpathian
villages, talked to people on the street, hiked the highest mountain in the
region, passed out 94,000 tracts in five cities, and preached the Gospel in
downtown Lviv. As a result of our efforts, the responses are already rolling in.
Since the beginning of CMO, five people have requested enrollment in our
correspondence course, Bible First, and around 50 have requested a copy of Good
and Evil.
In addition to ministry, we also thoroughly enjoyed getting to know the CMO guys
and sharing with them some of the things we have learned in our years on the
field. All of them are interested in
missions work, and some of them may even be joining us in Ukraine in the future!
The CMO 2019 Team. Left to right: Kade, Nelson, Anatoli, Nathan, Ralph, Josh,
Ben, and Cornelius
If you'd like to read more about CMO, I'd encourage you to check out the updates
the guys wrote on the ETO blog. For example, here is the
report Ralph wrote on
the last week of CMO. Also, be sure to check out the photo album for that week.
Team News
Our teammates, Joshua and Kelsie, are expecting a baby about a week from now.
I'm sure they would appreciate your prayers for a easy birth and a healthy baby!
Medical
Back in March, I reported that Lydia was likely to need a second surgery to
fully correct her lazy eye. Well, as of her last checkup, Lydia's eyes have
improved to the point that those plans are now on hold. We are now in "wait and
see" mode. If things get worse, Lydia may need the surgery after all, but if
they continue to improve, we may be in the clear!
Family
After a busy month of summer ministry, we are happy to be a family again! (Daddy
was gone a lot more than usual.) That
said, now that the girls are getting older, they are able to take part in CMO to
a degree. They joined the team a couple times for street ministry, and even went
with us to the mountains once to pass out film invitations!
Melissa and Lydia pass out film invitations in the village of Lopushanka with
Hosanna, Kade, and Ralph
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